Protecting Her Heart: Indianapolis Eagles Series Book 4

by Samantha Lind

  “Yes, so can you hold off on buying your ticket until after we talk with the docs and see what’s going on?”

  “Of course. I’m going to inform the team of Brayden’s passing and extend the offer to any of the other players who might want to attend or send something to the family. It’s bittersweet that the schedule aligned so perfectly, with no games those nights and the possibility of us going being an option.”

  “Well, as long as the docs clear me to travel, I want to be there for them.”

  “I know you do, babe. Now, let’s get some sleep and we’ll see what the doctors have to say tomorrow,” I tell him, as I push up to kiss him.

  “Good night, Princess. I love you.”

  “I love you, too,” I whisper against his lips. When the words register, the smile that fills his face is worth every moment I waited until the timing was perfect to tell him. I’ve let it almost slip out so many times, especially when he’s away on road trips, but I wanted to say it for the first time in person and see his reaction.

  “Say it again,” he says.

  “I love you, Mark.”

  “I love you, too, Princess. Always,” he tells me as we kiss again.

  We eventually break apart and I settle back in his embrace, my head on his chest and my fingers tracing his tattoos again. I can feel the love pouring off the two of us while we’re cradled in each other’s arms, where we finally drift off to sleep.

  Chapter Twenty

  Mark

  I usher Laura into the doctor’s office ahead of me so we can get the results from my MRI I had done earlier this morning. The pain has subsided slightly, so I’m taking that as a good sign.

  “Mark, Laura,” Dr. Volo, one of the team’s doctors, greets us as he walks into the office, followed by Josh.

  “What’s the verdict, Doc?” I ask, not wanting to beat around the bush or have anything sugarcoated.

  “Good news is, you didn’t tear your rotator cuff, and no other tears were noted on the MRI. It appears that it’s either a deep bruise or muscle sprain. With some rest and then PT, we think you’ll be back to one hundred percent in a matter of a few days, maybe a week or so, tops. Once the swelling goes down, the pain should subside quickly.”

  “That’s good news. I think the swelling is already going down, as the pain wasn’t as intense this morning,” I tell them.

  “That’s good to hear, Mark. Keep icing it and resting it for the next few days, then Josh will start you on some PT exercises to get it back to normal. Until then, take the pain meds as needed and take it easy. Don’t strain it or do anything that causes pain.”

  “Will do, sir. Thank you,” I say, offering my hand for him to shake as we all stand to exit the office.

  “Well, that was good news,” Laura says, as we walk down the hall of the arena.

  “It was. I was worried I’d need surgery and would end up not being able to play while we’re pushing to finish strong for the playoffs.”

  “I’m glad it isn’t that bad, and that all you’ll need is some physical therapy. You’ll be back on the ice in no time.”

  We enter the meeting room and find most of the team already in here, waiting for our team meeting to start the week. I drop a quick kiss to Laura’s lips before taking a seat as she makes her way to the front to talk with Coach and the team’s General Manager, Daniel.

  A few minutes later, the entire team has finally arrived, and Coach whistles to get everyone’s attention.

  “Listen up, guys. Ms. Erickson has some information to pass on to everyone, and then we’ll get onto normal business.”

  “Good morning, gentlemen,” she says, looking around the room to everyone. “I come bearing sad news. Brayden Macentire, the young boy who visited us back in October for his last wish, passed away yesterday. The Eagles organization will be making a formal statement this morning, sending our condolences to the family, as well as sending arrangements to the funeral home. If anyone would like to contact the family personally, I can provide their contact information. If anyone would like to attend the funeral, I can provide that information, as well.”

  Emotions are high as Laura finishes up and leaves the room, as Coach takes over the meeting.

  I watch from the bench, along with Josh, for a while as the guys take the ice for practice.

  “I talked with Dr. Volo, and we’re in to allow you to rest the shoulder for the next three days. Then I’ll do an assessment and we’ll set up a PT schedule. I’d like for you to stay off the ice for those three days, and we’ll decide after the assessment when you can return to practice,” Josh tells me.

  “Sounds good. I’m going to fly out for Brayden’s funeral, probably Thursday morning and come back Saturday, maybe Friday night. Do you want to do the assessment before I leave or once I’m back?”

  “Let’s see how you’re feeling Wednesday, and if you’re still having lots of pain, we’ll let you rest the extra few days, but if you’re feeling fine, then we’ll go ahead and do it before you leave. I can then send you with some stretches to do while you’re gone, to start working it.”

  “Sounds like a plan. Thanks, man.”

  “Anytime,” he says, as we both turn our attention back to the action on the ice.

  I leave once Coach finishes his end of practice chat and head for the offices to see if Laura has made our travel arrangements yet. Before I can make it out of the tunnel, my name’s being called by one of the guys.

  “Mark,” Scott calls from behind me, and I turn around to face the ice, waiting for him to catch up to me as some of my teammates pass me. I hold out a fist for them to hit as they go by.

  “What’s up, man?” I ask once he reaches me.

  “Are you flying out to the funeral?”

  “Yes, Laura was going to work on booking us flights.”

  “I’m going to text Becca and see if she wants to go, as well. I think it would be meaningful to the family if a few of us from the team showed up.”

  “I’m sure they’d appreciate that. I can let Laura know that you’re considering going, and see if she can get you guys on the same flights as us.”

  “Let me go call Becca and I’ll text you what she says. If anything, just text me the flight info, and I’ll have Becca book ours. She might want different flight times to better align with Michael’s nap schedule.”

  “Will do. Think Brian will want to come along, as well?” I ask, knowing he was also one of Brayden’s favorite players.

  “Not sure, but with Kinley so close to being due, I’d guess he’d say no. He doesn’t even like being away from her for games, at this point.”

  “You’re right. I won’t even bother with asking him then. He should stay here with his wife.”

  “Yep, all right, I’ll let you know what Becca says in just a few minutes,” Scott says, as he enters the locker room and I continue my way up to the team’s offices.

  “Hey, have you booked our travel yet?” I ask Laura once I reach her desk.

  “Yes, I got us morning flights on Thursday, returning late Friday night. I’ve booked us a hotel and also rented us a car.”

  “Sounds good. Can you possibly text the flights that you booked to Scott? He was going to call Becca and see if she was okay with going down, and mentioned possibly wanting to get the same flights as us.”

  “Yep, I’ll send him the information now,” she says, pulling out her phone.

  “Thanks, Princess.”

  “What are your plans for the rest of the day?” she asks as she sets her phone back on her desk.

  “Just heading home. I’m supposed to rest the shoulder, so I can’t do much for the next couple of days. No sense hanging out here anymore today.”

  “Want to go grab some lunch with me before you head home?”

  “Sure. Tacos?”

  “You know it,” she teases.

  With the rest of the guys all home for their game-day afternoon naps, the arena is fairly quiet. The coaching staff is all busy doing their game-day r
ituals, and here I am in Josh’s office, waiting for him to evaluate my shoulder. As the swelling went down in my shoulder the past couple of days, the pain has subsided a great amount. I’ll be missing tonight’s game, obviously, and probably Sunday’s, as well, but I hope to be back on the ice and in the game by the one after that.

  “All right, Mark. We’re going to run you through a bunch of range of motion movements. I need you to tell me if any of them cause pain, and if so, where the pain is at, what kind of pain, and how bad the pain is,” Josh instructs before he begins.

  “Easy enough,” I reply as he starts his assessment.

  About forty-five minutes later, he’s finished, and my arm is sore, but nothing too bad. He found my weak areas, and has already given me a few things to work on over the next couple of days while we’re gone, and then we’ll see how I’m doing once back.

  “I think you’ll be able to return to practice on Saturday as long as you don’t develop any new pain while you’re gone. If you feel fine then, and again for the morning skate on Sunday, you might be able to play again that night. Otherwise, for sure, next Tuesday.”

  “That’s awesome news,” I tell him. “Thanks, Josh.”

  “Anytime, man. And I want you to ice the shoulder after you work it out. Just fifteen to twenty minutes should do the trick, once a day. Are you still taking pain meds for it?”

  “Nothing strong. I last took some Ibuprofen last night before bed.”

  “That’s fine, that will help with the inflammation.”

  I hop off his table and put my T-shirt back on.

  “See ya later,” I call over my shoulder as I make my way out.

  “What time do we need to be at the funeral home?” I call out to Laura from the bathroom of the hotel room.

  “The visitation is from five thirty to eight thirty.”

  “I’m going to take a quick shower then. Can you pull out my slacks and a Polo, please, Princess?” I ask her.

  “Yep,” she calls back.

  I take a quick shower, always feeling grimy after flying for some reason. It must be the recycled air in the planes. I walk out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around my waist, and find Laura standing at the end of the bed in only a thong and bra. My dick hardens as I walk up behind her.

  “You’re doing naughty things to my brain right now, Princess.” I drop my lips to her exposed neck and slip a hand around her belly and down to toy with the waistband of her thong as I press my hard cock against her ass.

  “Mhmmm. You feel nice,” she murmurs.

  “Nice, you say. I can show you nice,” I say as I move her thong to the side and swipe my fingers over her clit.

  Her arms come up and wrap around my neck as she grinds her ass against my cock, my fingers working the hardened nub between her legs. My other hand snakes up and cups her breast, tugging her bra down to expose the nipple that I pluck and roll between my fingers.

  “You like that, Princess?” I ask as I work her clit over with my fingers.

  “Yes!” she pants. “I need more.”

  I bend her at the waist and bring her hands down onto the bed in front of us. I quickly move her thong out of the way from the back and after dropping my towel to the ground at our feet, I stroke my cock once and line it up with her opening, thrusting inside her wet pussy.

  “Fuck, Mark!” she cries once I’ve bottomed out.

  “That’s right, Princess,” I grit out as I start to pump inside her. I reach forward and grab one of her arms, bringing it behind her back and pinning it in place to give me something to hold on to, as I find a quick rhythm. I smack her ass, watching as it pinkens where my hand connected with it. Each slap earns me a new set of moans, and I can feel her getting wetter around my cock. “You like that?”

  “Yes,” she moans. “Harder, babe.”

  She requests, and I oblige. I swivel my hips and pound into her as hard as I can until she’s screaming my name as her orgasm explodes. The spasming of her pussy on my cock has me tripping over into my own orgasm as I empty myself inside her. I collapse down, my chest to her back, holding as much of my weight off her, resting my forearms on the bed. I kiss her shoulder once I’m able to start breathing normal again.

  I slip out of her and grab my towel from the ground to clean her up from this impromptu fuck.

  She rolls over after I stand, and the blissed-out look on her face has me hard and ready to go again.

  “I love you,” she tells me as she sits up to kiss me.

  “I love you, too, Princess.” I kiss her again. “We’d better get dressed and ready to go, so we don’t miss the visitation.”

  “I know,” she says, blowing out a breath.

  I step aside and start getting dressed in the clothes she set out for me. I’m ready before she is, so I take a seat in one of the chairs in our room and pull out my phone to send Scott a quick text message.

  Mark: Hey, Laura is just finishing up getting changed, we’ll be leaving in probably 20 minutes or so.

  * * *

  Scott: We’re dressed, Becca is just feeding Michael quick. We can be ready to go in 20. Did you want to just drive over together?

  “Hey, babe, Scott’s asking if we just want to ride together? He said they’ll be ready in twenty minutes or so. Becca is just feeding Michael first,” I call out to Laura as she gets ready in the bathroom.

  “Yeah, that will be fine,” she replies. “I’ll be done in here in just a few minutes.”

  Mark: That works for us. We’ll meet you down in the lobby.

  A half an hour later, we’re pulling into the funeral home parking lot that’s packed with cars. We make our way inside and find the end of the line that snakes through the building up to where the family is standing. Laura wasn’t sure if we should have kept our attendance a secret until we arrived but decided to tell Amber and Will that we’d be flying down, along with Scott and Becca. We didn’t want to be a burden to them. Once they found out we were coming, they were shocked we’d take the time from our busy schedules to come, and they asked Scott and I if we’d be pallbearers during the funeral tomorrow, which we both agreed to immediately.

  We finally make it to the front, and while I’m shaking Will’s hand, Laura wraps Amber in a hug. I can hear their mutual sniffs as they cry on each other’s shoulders.

  “How are you holding up?” I ask Will, as the ladies talk amongst themselves.

  “Just one moment at a time. I think we both crashed hard Monday night, just due to extreme exhaustion. We’d both been running on fumes, that our bodies finally just gave up. These past few days have been crazy busy with dealing with all the arrangements, family coming into town, and all the calls and texts from friends and family. As word reaches more and more people, the love and support has just continued to pour in,” he tells me.

  “Well, you know how to reach me. If there’s anything we can do, please don’t hesitate to ask,” I remind him before we move forward to allow the line to keep moving.

  With the funeral over and the reception cleaned up, most of the Macentire family has cleared out and headed home. Scott and Becca headed back to the hotel to let Michael take a nap before we fly back late tonight.

  “Thank you guys again so much for coming down. I can’t tell you enough how much it meant to us to have you here for this,” Amber tells Laura and me as we sit and visit with them.

  “Of course. We both have grown a little fond of your family these past few months,” Laura assures her.

  “I’m so glad Brayden’s wish was to come watch you guys play. Look at what his wish has done to create this friendship,” Amber says.

  “If you guys ever want to come back out for a game, you just give me the dates and we’ll make it happen,” Laura offers.

  We visit for a while longer before we finally say our goodbyes, then head for the hotel to pack up before we have to leave for the airport. Laura was able to get us super late checkouts with the hotel, so that we’d have the rooms until we needed to leave this evening
.

  We make it home late and both collapse into bed. It was a whirlwind trip, filled with a lot of emotional moments for all of us.

  “I’m so glad we went,” Laura says, her head resting on my chest in her favorite spot right over my heart, as she traces the lines of my tattoos with her fingertips. It’s moments like these, where we just lie here and talk, that have become some of my most favorite moments with her. These are the times we build that deeper connection. We talk about our dreams and fears, the possibilities for the future.

  “I am, too.”

  “When I slipped away this morning, I went to talk to the funeral director to try and pay for everything for them, but he told me they’d already received an anonymous payment for everything,” Laura says, after a few moments of silence. “My dad had suggested the team could cover the expenses for them, so I was a little shocked when he told me it was already taken care of.”

  “It’s because I called the funeral home on Monday and gave them my credit card number,” I tell her.

  “When he told me that, I’d wondered if it was you,” she replies, looking up at me. “I love you.”

  “It was the least I could do, and I love you, too, Princess,” I tell her, as I cup her face and bring it to mine so I can kiss her.

  “You’re the kindest, most selfless, man I’ve ever met, and I’m glad I get to call you mine,” she says between kisses.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Laura

  July

  Four months later

  “To Richard and Madison!” Scott raises his glass as he finishes off his best man’s speech. We all follow his direction and take a sip of our champagne.

  “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight, Princess?” Mark whispers in my ear as we sit at the table during the rehearsal dinner.